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GOP senator (Coburn) blocks veterans' suicide prevention bill
December 15, 2014, 07:11 pm
By Ramsey Cox
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) blocked the Senate from passing a veterans’ suicide prevention bill.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who will serve as ranking member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee next year, asked for unanimous consent to pass H.R. 5059, the Clay Hunt SAV Act. But Coburn objected because he said the goals of the bill are already funded through programs within the Department of Veterans Affairs.
...
The bipartisan bill passed in the House last week. But Coburn was the final hurdle to passing the legislation before the Senate adjourns for the year.
H.R. 5059 would have required the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense to annually arrange for an independent evaluation of the VA and DOD mental health care and suicide prevention programs. It would also increase the number of psychiatrists at VA facilities.
...
http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/227223-gop-senator-blocks-veterans-suicide-prevention-bill
By Ramsey Cox
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) blocked the Senate from passing a veterans’ suicide prevention bill.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), who will serve as ranking member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee next year, asked for unanimous consent to pass H.R. 5059, the Clay Hunt SAV Act. But Coburn objected because he said the goals of the bill are already funded through programs within the Department of Veterans Affairs.
...
The bipartisan bill passed in the House last week. But Coburn was the final hurdle to passing the legislation before the Senate adjourns for the year.
H.R. 5059 would have required the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Defense to annually arrange for an independent evaluation of the VA and DOD mental health care and suicide prevention programs. It would also increase the number of psychiatrists at VA facilities.
...
http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/227223-gop-senator-blocks-veterans-suicide-prevention-bill
Sen. Blumenthal said he will reintroduce the bill in the new Congress.